Warren says Chicago is the “best site” for new stadium |
LONDON, U.K. - For CEO Kevin Warren, his biggest challenge when he took that position for the Chicago Bears was to head their new stadium project. Speaking to the media ahead of the Bears’ London game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday (8:30 a.m. / NFL Network), Warren said that he believes Chicago is the best site for the new stadium to be built.
The current goal is to have construction start at some point in 2025. “I think it’s the best site as of now because one of the things we have to do and is great about traveling here and it’s a reminder of how small this world is and that’s one of the reasons why we’re here is to shrink the world. When you look at the infrastructure, when you look at the city of London, you look at how things are built here. We have an opportunity in Chicago to really think creatively out of the box to say that we have a piece of land, I still argue it’s the most beautiful piece of land in the world with the lake, with the downtown, with the museum campuses, and what can we do to be able to pull all that together in and around the museum campuses, downtown, the lake of football stadium, green space. And so, I look at it as an opportunity,” Warren said. “We’re (continuing) to make progress. We have a plan. We stay focused still to be able to be in the ground, start construction sometime in 2025. There’s a lot of activity that’s still going on. We’re having regular meetings with key business leaders, key politicians, just staying focused and on course. This is a long journey. Any of these stadium projects, you try to make it as straight of a journey as you possibly can. But, this takes time. It takes a lot of effort. It takes a lot of energy. I’ve been there before and so, we’re exactly where I thought we would be at this point in time.” Arlington Heights is still an available option, however. Wherever the stadium is built, Warren says it will be looking to host numerous events, including concerts, the Super Bowl, and the Final Four for college basketball and football. That goal affects how the stadium will be designed, as it must be able to effectively host all of these events. “I look forward to being able to host mega events. Not only being able to bid for the Super Bowl, but Final Four, college football games, concerts, all those different things,” Warren said. “These are not easy projects and so, again, I’m energized. I’m excited. It’s been good to work together. We’ve learned something each and every day and we’ll continue to move forward.” Another integral part of Warren’s job is increasing the Chicago Bears’ international presence. They have played in two London games ever, the last one being in 2019. Warren sees a lot of opportunity in growing the fan base worldwide as he says it is a way to target younger generations. That helps with the longevity of the fan base and thus is a priority. Being in London this week, Warren is seeing the fruit of his labors as he described seeing people in Mike Ditka and William “Refrigerator” Perry apparel. “I’m all for international growth and opportunities. You think of it, and I look at how opportunities like this can help galvanize an organization. Look at this facility here and have our players (spend) this much time together and also, I’m always excited about opportunities that can help our players and staff grow to be able to travel. One of the greatest learning lessons in life is the ability to travel,” Warren said. “We have 40 million fans worldwide and one of the things you find by coming over here, I mean, we had a full day at work on Monday. (They) actually, it worked out before we left: you get on a bus, you get on a plane, and you wake up in London, and you realize how small this world is, and my focus will remain to shrink the world. The National Football League is an absolutely vibrant entity and anytime you get a chance to play on an international basis, I want to lean into it. We’re leaning into this year. It’s been fantastic to see the number of fans here and when you see people in London walking down the street in Dikta sweaters and Refrigerator Perry jerseys and all those different things. It’s magnificent. So, I’m all about shrinking the world. We have the U.K. region. We have Spain and I’m one of those individuals that when we get an opportunity to play from an international standpoint to grow our fanbase. The other thing about coming here, it grows a younger (demographic) and that’s what even made Hard Knocks unique, the number of individuals at a younger age who were watching and being attracted to the Chicago Bears. So, that’s one of the things that I want to make sure we do in honor of George Halas, the McCaskey family, keep our traditional values of what the Chicago Bears have been built upon but also to continually innovate and to create and get a younger demographic.”
